THE SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
101 
DANA’a PRIZE ESSAY ON MANURES. 
(Continued from page 89) 
Section Eighth. 
Manures Cimsisling of Salts. 
In using the term salts liere, to designate a 
class of manu.-es, I wish to distinguish between 
these and mineral manures, as ihey are usually 
termed. These manures are similar in kind to 
the salts whose action in cow dung we have al- 
ready considered. They are truly mineral salts, 
derived from the mineral kingdom, entering in- 
to and forming a part of plants, and from this 
source introduced into the dung of animals. 
Their action, whatever be their name, has been 
explained. But the salts composing the second 
class of manures now under consideration, are 
not ot mineral origin. They are derived from 
the animal kingdom. The source from which 
they are formed is the living process of the ani- 
mal body. They are animal salts. Here, then, 
let us divide the second class of manures into 
animal salts, which are truly manures, both 
their base and their acid acting as nourishers ot 
plants — and into mineral salts. Here, again, 
reader, you will find that the lew facts which we 
have pointed out, relating to the food and nour- 
ishment of animals, will help us on our way in 
tracing the source of these animal salts. 
It has been already said, that the food of ani- 
mals is divided into two classes — that which 
does and that which does not contain nitrogen. 
All domestic animals eat these classes together. 
In a few word.s, let us trace their course alter 
the animal digested them. The one class goes 
to form tat, or to support the natural heat ol the 
body, and passes off by the skin in sweat, or in 
moisture of the breath, and all its excess, or un- 
diiresied part, goes off in clung. The excess of 
nitrogenous food, all that is not required for re- 
pairing the daily waste of the body, or to in- 
crease its growth, also passes off in dung, as ex- 
crement. This is a small portion, and its ef- 
fects on the strength ot dung have been pointed 
out. But the wear and tear, as we may call it, 
of the flesh and blood, the parts -which are daily 
and constantly thrown out ot the body as excre- 
tions, or old materials, enter the circulation, and 
pass out of the body in urine. This is the point 
to which I would call your attention. The un- 
digested food, and the excrements not contain- 
ing nitrogen, go off in dung. The food and the 
spent parts ol the body containing nitrogen, go 
oil in urine. This last, too, is the course of 
most alkaline sails taken into the body. They 
pass ofi in urine. Here, then, we come to the 
subject, quite prepared to understanll it. The 
urine is a collection of salts ; some are of mine- 
ral, others of animal origin. But that which 
gives the urine its peculiar and chrracteristic 
properties, is a substance formed from the nitro- 
genous food, and termed urea. Now you need 
hardly trouble yourself to remember this new 
name : all I want you to understand about it is, 
that when urine is exposed to air, it rots - and 
this peculiar substance is changed to ammonia. 
That is the point to be remembered. In consid- 
ering urine, therefore, as a manure, it will not 
be necessary to point out further the n-ode ot its 
action, than to refer that of every animal to its 
salts and power ol forming ammonia. The 
quantity of the last will be in proportion to the 
qua lityofurea. There are other salts of am- 
monia in urine, and also mineral salts. These 
affect but little the value of urine as a manure. 
It is the urea., essence of urine, that substance 
which forms ammonia in rotting urine, which 
alone makes this liquid more valuable than 
dung. Hence, reader, if this is impres.?ed on 
your mind, you will perceive that the chiefest 
things to be regarded in urine, are: first, the cir- 
cumstances which affect the quality and quanti- 
ty; second, the best mode of piomotmga change 
of urine lo ammonia ; third, the time required 
for the process ; and fourth, the best mode of 
preserving the ammonia, when formed. You 
will perceive, reader, that all along 1 have en- 
deavored to point out the principles on which 
manures act. It you go by general principles, 
then for a plain practical farmer like yourself, 
wiih only chemistry enough to understand afew 
of its terms, it must be quite a thankle.?s service 
to point out to you in detail all the various 
things contained in urine. All you want to 
know is this— does urine contain, as solid dung 
does, water, mould, and salts ? 
It doe.s. The mould is so small a part, it 
may be left out of view. The salts are like 
those in the solid dung — mineral salts — and then 
we have the peculiar principle, urea, which lor' 
all practical purposes may be called ammonia. 
We may, then, with this division, present in a 
table the composition ol the urine of various ani- 
mals at one ’lancer 
Water. 
Salts. 
Ammonia. 
Cattle urine, ^ 100 lbs. 02.62 
338 
4. 
Horse, 
do 
94.00 
5.03 
.70 
Sheep, 
do 
96. 
1.20 
2.80 
Hog, 
do 
92.60 
1.76 
564 
Human, 
do 
95.75 
1.88 
2 36 
Now cast 
your eye 
carefully over 
this table ; 
the figures at once tell you the value of these dil- 
ferent liquids. The last column gives the true 
value. The other salts vary much in quantity, 
and this affects the quality. The actual amount 
ot ammonia in human urine and cattle dung, 
is about the same; yet in actual practice it is 
found the effeclsof urine are nearly double those 
of dung. Look, now, for the reason of this. In 
the first place, the principle which gives ammo- 
nia in urine, runs at once by putrefaction into 
that state. It gives nothing else ; whereas in 
dung, the ammonia arises from a slower decay, 
and the principle which here affords ammonia, 
may, and without doubt does, form other pro- 
ducts. Hence, we have a quick action with the 
liquid, a slower one with Ihe solid. A second 
cause of the better eflects of the liquid is, that it 
contains, besides its ammonia, a far greater 
amount of salts, and these give a more perma- 
nent effect. 
The amountof salts in human, cow, and horse 
dung, is about one pound in every hundred. 
While the urine ot the same animals contains 
nearly six pounds in every hundred. A third 
cause of ihe greater fertilizing action, is found 
in the peculiar character of some of these salts, 
which are composed of soda, potash, lime, &c., 
united to an acid formed from urea, in the ani- 
mal body. This acid is like the acid of saltpe- 
tre ; it is a nourisher ol plants, as much so as is 
carbonic acid. 
Section Ninth. 
Of the Causes lohich make Urine Belter or Worse, 
More or Less, and the Modes of Preserving it. 
There can be no doubt that the same causes 
which we have pointed out as affecting the value 
ot dung, affect also the urine. 
We have already alluded (in section viii.) to 
the four chief circumstances lo be regarded in 
mine. And first, of its composition. It will 
be affected by the age, sex, food, and difference 
ot animal. The process of forming urine is the 
same in man and animals. Now if we reason 
here, as we surely may, from analogy, then the 
effect of age and sex upon the quantity of the 
essence of urine or urea, will apppar from the 
result of one hundred and twenty analyses ot 
urine, as follows : 
Grs. of Urea. 
In 24 hours there aredischargedbymen, 432 
By women, 293 
By old men, from 76 to BO years of age, 123 
By children 8 years of age, 208 
By children 4 years of age, 70 
It will be recollected that each grain ofurea 
is equal to a grain of carbonate of ammonia of 
the shops; so that a healthy man discharges 
daily about an ounce of this salt. If, then, other 
animals are affected by age and sex, as is the 
human species, then we may say that bulls and 
oxen give a better urine than cows, steers better 
than calces, and a venerable old cow gives near- 
ly as much of the essence of urine as two 
calves. 
Food affects the quantity of water, and that 
acting merely to dilute the urine, renders it 
weaker in salts for a given amount, though per- 
haps not the daily amount of salts. Sup; osirg 
the animal well led, so as to keep up the wear 
and tear of his flesh and blood, then as the urine 
derives it chief value liom the worn-out mate- 
rials of the body, the actual amount of urea dai- 
ly discharged may be the same, though the 
amount of the urine may vary considerably. 
W e may increase the amount ot salts and acids 
by particular food, but this can nev'er be conti- 
nued long enough to change materially the cha- 
racter ol urine as a manure. Difierenceof ani- 
mal has also a great effect on the quality of 
urine. The more active, the greater the wear 
and tear of the flesh, 1 he better the urine in work- 
ing animals. Where the animal is stall-fed, 
there, no doubt, the urine is siill richer, and the 
urine of fattening animals is still more valua- 
ble. Hence of all animals, commend me to 
swine, as manufacturers of ammonia. Cast 
your eye on the table (in section 8) of the 
amount of urea or ammonia furnished by va- 
rious animals. No one exceeds the hog. He 
seems specially formed by nature for this office. 
He eats every thing. His habits require very 
little of that class of food which forms flesh and 
blood. He is a fat-former, a magazine of lard, 
a real oil-butt, and demands, therefore, the food 
essential to form fat and keep up his heat. He 
returns, of course, having little lean meat to 
form, (nobody would praise him f t that.,') hav- 
ing litile flesh to form to ■increase his size, he re- 
turns quickly the waste his body suffers, as urea, 
which becomes ammonia.. But it is only the 
still, and quiet, and penned animal, which gives 
this valuable product. If we would cause him 
simply to produce the greatest amount of his 
manufactory, without taking into account his 
labor in shovelling over the compost heap, per- 
haps no better rule can be given, than the 8hak- 
er practice of feeding with lettuce leaves. Hav- 
ing little brains to replenish or build up, and 
not quick in his nerves, (for be it known to you, 
reader, the opium of lettuce-leaves is supposed 
to contribute mainly to the formation of brain 
and nerves,) the opium eatir.g hog will return a 
vast amount of the nitrogen of his lettuce in the 
shape of ammonia. It now you add to the facts, 
common to the nourishment efswine, the action 
ol ammonia on mould, as it has been explained, 
you will see, that he who neglects to fill his 
yards with mould, and swine to convert it, over- 
looks one ol the cheapest, most effectual, and 
certain modes of forming manure, which prac- 
tice and theory unite in pronouncing the surest 
element of the farmer’s success. Not only is 
the quality of urine affected by age, sex, food, 
difference of animal, but the season also exeits 
an influence upon this liquid. The urine of 
cattle often contains ammonia ready formed in 
summer, but never in winter. In cold weather, 
the amount of ammonia, or rather the principle 
affording it, is less: often it is not one-half in 
winter what it is in summer. This certainly is 
a misfortune to the farmer, whogenerally keeps 
his cattle up only in winter; but then it is an 
argument also fiir the practice of summer soil- 
ing. 
Secondly, with respect to the circumstances 
neces.sary to change urea to ammonia; or, in 
short words, to fu’ly ripen urine, or to make it a 
fit manure. These also depend upon the sea- 
son, in part. It is to be remembered, reader, 
that this rotting of urine is only fermentation. 
It takes place because there is a principle in 
urine which brmgs on fermemation, just as it 
does in new cider. Now if it is by ferment.ation 
that urine rots, it will take place, as all fermen- 
tation does, best at a moderate temperature. 
The cold of winter will prevent it. Hence your 
winter manure must be allowed time, as the 
heat of spring comes on, to ferment, that the 
urine may be changed to ammonia ; and every 
means must be taken to prevent the heat rising 
beyond, in the manure heap, or falling below a 
moderately temperate warmth. These aie the 
circumstances which chiefly promote the change 
from urea to ammonia. 
Thirdly — in regard to the time in which this 
change will take place, it will require at least 
one month ; and six weeks are better. If urine 
